Darkness
by SanityIsSubjective
Summary: A deep breath. In and out, slowly. His concinousess begins to return. Mind is up and running. Assess the damage. Breathe in- No, don't do that. Sharp pain in his ribs, upper right side. ...Damn...


Woo second fic! Written at... 2:30 in the morning. I have no idea where this came from, but I'd appreciate any feedback. I'm working on improving my writing ability, so I've started writing whatever comes to mind. And evidently I have a very weird mind...

Batman and co. do not belong to me, I make no money off them, in fact I've given them a lot of _my_ money, yada yada yada...

703 words, not including the stuff above the line.

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><p>A deep breath. In and out, slowly. His consciousness begins to return. Mind is up and running. Assess the damage. Breathe in- No, don't do that. Sharp pain in his ribs, upper right side. Legs not responding, but not necessarily due to damage. Ok, start at the head. Head hurts. Move lower. Sharp pain in the neck, almost like - yep, he's been shot. Tranquilizer dart. That accounts for the confusion. Ok, try to open the eyes. Eyes open, but complete darkness. Normally his eyes would adjust... Ah, something's covering them. Try to remove it. Arms are bound. Ok, the senses. Touch - cold ground. Slightly damp, stone. Same for the wall. Smell - damp as well. Musty too. He's probably in a cellar or basement of some sort. Sound? Just the dripping of water. Leaky pipe. Yep, definitely in a cellar. Try to move. Ow. His shoulders ache. His wrist feels broken. Damn.<p>

His arms are bound behind him. His legs are still offline. No gloves, no boots. Utility belt is most likely gone. The mask is still there though. Thank God for small favors. He tries to remember how he got here. At the manor? No, that was earlier in the day. Was it still the same day? Doesn't matter right now, concentrate. Tim and Dick, stopping by the office... No, that was yesterday. Yesterday? Whatever day was before what he remembers. Clouded mind. Have to think through... An alley. His parents? No, that was a lifetime ago. But it was the alley. A rose. No, two roses. Damn, if he could only think straight.

Ok, make a timeline. Went to the alley. Had two roses. Someone showed up. Nightwing? No, someone else. But who? He sighs. A movement across the room. He instantly stills. Someone's been here the whole time? Dammit! He should have sense it! The tranquilizer has affected him more than he would care to admit. Mental note - find the tranquilizer used, build up resistance.

"You awake Bat?"

He doesn't respond.

"Hey Boss!" A man's voice. New York accent. Caucasian. Adult. Not old, but not young. He's opening a door. Sounds large from the way he grunts. "He's awake!"

He sits there, attempting to get his legs working again. He may have to fight his way out. Steps. Someone's coming into the cellar. Probably the "boss."

"Well, well, well, what have we here?" A laugh. Deep, rumbling. Terrifying. "I spy with my little eye, something tall, dark and gloomy. Any idea what that could be Bats?"

He remains silent. He's confused. This isn't his usual M.O. Upside-down over a tank of piranhas, sure. Laughing gas, large mallets, things like that, that's how he operates. Not cellars and guards.

"Oh come on now Bats! You gotta know it's me! That blindfold may make you blind as a bat, but... HA! Oh that's a good one! The little bird brat woulda used that one!" He pauses. "...The old one, not the depressed one you have now. You know, the punny one! Hah ha! Oh, I'm on a roll today!"

The steps move closer. He feels the hot breath on his face. It smells like onions. And garlic. And a hint of fish. Of course he would eat something so offensive...

"Oh Batsy... Why, when my boys called me up and said they saw you looking so sad in that alleyway, I just knew I had to try to cheer you up. And I thought, 'What better way to cheer ol' Gloomy Gus up than with a surprise party!'"

The blindfold is ripped off. Light assaults his eyes. He blinks rapidly, trying to make out the shapes in front of him.

The cellar was larger than he thought. There were more people too. Fifteen by his quick count. His eyes find the chalk white face. He was smiling still. Not the normal, day-to-day smile. His "cat just caught a hawk and is going to eat well for a week" smile.

"Suprise! I got some of my best boys here to make you happy again! And if you're not, at least I'll be when this party's over! Heh heh heh..."

The laugh devolves into a cackle as the men surround him.


End file.
